EXCLUSIVE: BBC bosses are risking a fallout with legendary rocker Neil Young, 79, just days before his Glastonbury gig over potential coverage of his performance on Saturday
BBC bosses risk falling foul of rock legend Neil Young just days before his Glastonbury gig. The Heart of Gold singer, 79, is one of the biggest names on the bill but it is still unclear how much of his Saturday performance will be on TV. Young is still wrangling with the BBC about coverage. Insiders suspect he will agree to letting just a handful of songs go out on TV or BBC iPlayer. Whether they will be live or part of an edited highlights package is still unclear. A BBC schedule of live sets released to the public omits Neil Young, while mentioning headliners such as Charli xcx and Doechii who play other stages on Saturday.
Bosses will have to tread carefully after the star pulled out of the festival earlier this year citing concerns about the BBC’s “corporate control”. He said in January: “We were told that BBC was now a partner in Glastonbury and wanted us to do a lot of things in a way we were not interested in.
“It seems Glastonbury is now under corporate control and is not the way I remember it being.”
A BBC spokeswoman said: “We aim to bring audiences as many performances as possible from the Pyramid Stage, and our schedules and plans continue to be finalised, right up to and during the festival.”
Young has made principled stands recently. He blocked his music from Spotify for two years, saying a podcaster on the platform had spread vaccine misinformation.
This year, he has also refused to let Ticketmaster use dynamic pricing for his forthcoming tour. When Young played Glastonbury in 2009 only five songs were televised.
Speaking at the time Mark Cooper, then executive producer of the BBC’s Glastonbury coverage, said: “Neil Young’s career has been conducted on his own terms.
“They believe in the live event and retaining its mystery and that of their artist. They have decided to make one song available online over the weekend to give a flavour of his set. That’s Rockin’ in the Free World and that’s their decision.
“You probably won’t find too many Neil Young performances available freely on TV or online.”
Elsewhere in the Glastonbury controversy, Prime Minister Keir Starmer called for Kneecap to be pulled from the line-up. The band was due to perform in the 2025 festival, but the PM doesn’t think it would be appropriate due to recent events.
He made the statement after Kneecap member Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh appeared in court as he was charged with a terror offence. The incident was relating to the musician allegedly displaying a flag and making remarks in support of the proscribed terrorist organisation Hezbollah at a concert in November last year.
Liam Ó hAnnaidh goes by the stage name Mo Chara and was bailed until later in the summer, which means he is able to play at Glastonbury. The festival will kick off on June 25 up until June 30.
When asked by The Sun if he thinks Kneecap should perform at the annual festival, Starmer said: “No, I don’t. I think we need to come down really clearly on this.
“I won’t say too much, because there’s a court case on, but I don’t think that’s appropriate.” The band are scheduled to perform on the West Holts Stage on Saturday.
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